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HEAVEN's CAFE, LIVE: This is a very ambitious,
multi-media presentation, featuring the musical talents of ART ROCK CIRCUS (John
Miner-guitars, Jon Cornell-bass, and Jon Weisberg-drums), a cast of six singers,
Melanie Grimmett on violin, and a slew of dancers, costumes and props.
The concept is the brainchild of John Miner, and it constitutes what younger music
critics derisively call a "Rock Opera". It is also, more significantly,
a very successful union between psychedelic rock and Broadway musical theater.
While neither is really my cup of tea, I was impressed by the end result.
The story is somewhat vague (perhaps
following the blueprint of works such as Tommy), centering on the spiritual
implications stemming from the encounter of several reincarnations of the same
person in a place called the Heaven's Cafe; a meeting of the self from various
perspectives, punctuated by some soul food. Actually, there is obviously no soul
food involved, but I just couldn't resist the lame joke. That aside, each
character or facet of this single soul entity is entertainingly and convincingly
introduced and developed by a different member of the cast of talented singers,
and the result is an engaging sort of schizophrenic dialogue.
Concerning the musical performance, I
am compelled to quote Robert Fripp, who in his sometimes-inexhaustible
pompousness, once wrote: "The aim in presenting this live performance is to
reflect the spirit of the group in a moment of its appearance. Live recording is
not a precise art. But then, neither is recording". I couldn't agree more
with Bob. This album really captures a band of musicians during a good night at
the bizarrely named "Flamingo Theater of Performing Arts" in Las Vegas,
Nevada. The production is far from pristine, but the CD is a good aural snapshot
of what went on that night.
My only complaint here is the fact that
I don't have the benefit of watching the performance, and at times Miner's music
lacks enough dynamics to engage the listener successfully. If ever there was
something suitable for a prog underground DVD, I think this would be it.
To anyone who wants to hear what a Broadway
performance of psychedelic rock would sound like, check it out. It is really quite
different, and I don't give it a higher rating simply because the music lacks
enough variety to carry the weight of this ambitious multi-media work by itself.
But I feel that many people could find many things of interest here. Even the less
robotic Ayreon fans could dig this. It certainly lacks the lab coat, anti-septic
protools digital dryness of Ayreon, but by the same token Heaven's Cafe is NOT a
sci-fi gumbo, and is thus much more organic and sincere. Kudos to tributary for taking a chance on such a
project! The CD includes a libretto (crucial). Go to Tributary music and
hear the samples, and decide if you want to take the full journey.
Reviewer: El Gordo
Rating: 6 keyboards
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